State Secretary for International Cooperation and for Ibero-America and the Caribbean Visits Honduras

18/04/2018

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​On 15, 16 and 17 April, the State Secretary for International Cooperation and for Ibero-America and the Caribbean (SECIPIC), Fernando García Casas, was in Honduras as part of a visit aimed at reinforcing the already close relationship between Spain and the Central American country.

During the first stage of the visit and within the framework of the priority granted by Spain for the protection of Human Rights defenders, the State Secretary travelled to La Esperanza. There, he visited the headquarters of the Civic Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH), founded by the Human Rights activist Berta Cáceres. The State Secretary held a meeting with her daughter, Laura Zúñiga Cáceres, and expressed his desire for a timely clarification of the death of the indigenous leader, Berta Cáceres, before the courts. During his visit to Honduras, the State Secretary also held a meeting with the Jesuit priest Ismael Moreno, 'Padre Melo', a figure firmly committed to the defence of Human Rights and the founder of the Department of Human Rights of the Reflection, Research, and Communication Team (ERIC) and Director of Radio Progreso.

In Tegucigalpa, State Secretary García Casas was received by the President of Honduras, Juan Orlando Hernández, to whom he conveyed Spanish support for the consolidation of a process of dialogue and reconciliation in Honduras that allows for the political crisis to be overcome. Furthermore, he held a working meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, María Dolores Agüero, where they reviewed the bilateral relations and undertook to continue working on issues such as the regional integration process, the Ibero-American community of Nations, relationships with the EU and development cooperation. The State Secretary also met the Presidential candidates for Opposition Alliance Against the Dictatorship, Salvador Nasralla, and the Liberal Party, Luis Zelaya.

The tour also included a visit to several relevant projects developed by Spanish Cooperation. In Comayagua he walked through the historic centre that Spain has helped restore and revitalise and the vocational school that, within the framework of the Eurolabor programme funded by the EU, provides Honduran young people with training in order to help them find employment and prevent migration. He also travelled to Lejamaní to assess the scope of the treatment facility of the programme on water and sanitation in the Comayagua valley which intends to reach more than 45,000 people in a sustainable manner. In Tegucigalpa the State Secretary was able to verify the results of the Convivencia programme with which Spanish Cooperation contributes to the recovery public spaces and the promotion of urban environments for coexistence.

The visit of the State Secretary also included a breakfast with Spanish business leaders resident in the Central American country in order to gain first-hand knowledge of their situation and perspectives.